1. Technical Field
This invention relates generally to flow and volume measurement, utility meters, sub-metering, and the like. It relates more particularly to a metering data transmitter device that receives metering data from a meter and transmits that metering data wirelessly to another location.
2. Description of Related Art
The term “meter” herein includes any of various meters that provide an indication of the volume, quantity, and/or flow. Such a meter is often used by a utility provider, for example, in order to determine usage by a customer or other user for billing purposes. It is then often referred to as a “utility meter.” It is the most commonly used measurement system for measuring the flow of water, gas, electricity, and/or other utilities supplied to houses.
During operation of a typical utility meter (e.g., a water meter type of utility meter), fluid moving through the meter strikes a nutating disk within the meter. The nutating disk is mounted eccentrically so that it must “wobble” or nutate in response to the passing fluid. As the disk nutates, it actuates a gearing and register arrangement that provides a direct indication on a visually discernible meter display of the volume of fluid passing through the meter. The nutating disk usually actuates a micro reed switch also, in order to thereby provide a remotely usable electrical pulse signal (i.e., switch closures) that is indicative of flow rate and/or volume. The remotely usable electrical pulse signal is coupled by wiring to another location in order to provide metering data that is indicative of usage information.
In a typical installation, the electrical pulse signal (i.e., an electrical input signal) is coupled by a first electrical wiring arrangement (i.e., wireless-transmitter wiring) to a wireless transmitter for transmission of the metering data to another location (e.g., a sub-metering data collection or retransmission hub). Frequently, the electrical pulse signal is also coupled by a second electrical wiring arrangement (i.e., remote-display wiring) to a remote display unit that provides a visually discernible display of usage information at a location remote to the meter. The remote-display wiring is installed with, or added to, a meter installation to help alleviate user inconvenience experienced in a situation where the display on the meter is not readily viewable by the user, The remote display unit is located in a location where the user can more readily view it.
Installation of the remote display unit is commonly accomplished by either of two methods. The first method involves splicing a Y-connection in the wireless-transmitter wiring that couples the electrical pulse signal (i.e., the electrical input signal) to the wireless transmitter. The remote-display wiring is spliced into the remote-display wiring with what is often called a “Y-connection.” The second method involves connecting the remote-display wiring to a terminal on the wireless transmitter that is provided for that purpose.
Either of those two methods involves certain complexity and expense. Moreover, damaged or otherwise faulty components and/or wiring can result in the number of pulse counts of the electrical pulse signal that are received by the wireless transmitter (and thereby the usage information received by the wireless transmitter) differing significantly from that received at the remote display unit. As a result, customer billing can be significantly inconsistent with the reading on the remote display unit. Billing can be significantly different from what the customer expects.